When I am sick, I crave for weird stuff. Like right now I want nothing but a bowl of instant Shin Ramen, the spicy type that makes you want to cry! After all I am living with a really cute Korean flatmate who has introduced me all sorts of Korean food and snacks. But only until yesterday I discovered that she had never tried wasabi peas. What?

I actually believe that almost everyone I know has tried wasabi green peas. I happen to know someone who ate wasabi peas religiously during her exam back in her undergraduate years. I remember seeing tones of tins like these in her Melbourne CBD apartment. Literally, tins and tins of wasabi peas. I don’t know whether she still likes them, but well, they are great snack. Crunchy and a bit spicy, wasabi peas can be really addictive.

I love wasabi peas, and I also adore sushi and salmon. I also like those flavoured rice balls I used to get from a tiny Japanese cafe in Caulfield, Melbourne. So why don’t we have wasabi peas flavoured rice ball? However, there is a technical problem – I don’t know how to mould or roll sushi. So I cheat and create a sushi layered cake instead.

The so-called ‘cake’ is actually nice. I like the crunchiness of the crushed peas in the rice. Making it is such a breeze as well. The only thing you have to cook is the rice (which can be taken care of with a good rice cooker). The ‘construction’ part is easy as a well. No need for fancy mould or rings. Just use a foam cup (picture shown).

Simplicity it is, good ingredients are essential. Sashimi grade salmon is a must. And venture out to Asian shops (particularly the Korean and Japanese ones) for premium grade sushi rice. This type of rice has firmer and larger grains than the variety found in chain supermarket. For vegetarians, you can top the sushi with marinaded tofu, picked carrots or whatever you fancy.

Here is the instruction for the recipe with the longest name I have ever created!

- Get one foam cup, cut off the bottom and use as a mould. Place the mould onto the serving dish. Press a layer of rice into the mould, followed by cucumber & avocado mixture, then another layer of rice. Top up with salmon pieces. Remove the mould.

I was going to suggest avocados instead of salmon for vegetarians but you already have it inside the rice so it would be kind of redundant. Otherwise, avocados seasoned with soy sauce & wasabi are like vegetarian Toro.

This is really beautiful. I've discovered I'm a complete sucker for photos of raw salmon, and the recipe looks wonderful too. Love how you turned your lack of sushi-rolling experience into a creative asset.

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About myself

Hi, my name is Anh. I'm a Melbourne based food blogger. Hanoi born, but my inspirations are all over the place. Still, I am mostly a Melbourne girl at heart. Here you will find all the wonderful food adventures that the eclectic city of Melbourne has given me.